Oven appliance with direct cavity heating

ABSTRACT

An oven appliance includes a cabinet with a chamber defined within the cabinet for receipt of food items for cooking. The oven appliance also includes a gas burner positioned within the cabinet outside of the chamber. The gas burner is in thermal communication and in fluid communication with the chamber by a direct flow path from the gas burner to the chamber.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The subject matter of the present disclosure relates generally to an oven appliance, such as an oven appliance including a gas burner which provides direct heating to a cooking chamber or cavity of the oven.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Oven appliances generally include a cabinet that defines a cooking chamber for cooking food items therein, such as by baking or broiling the food items. To heat the cooking chamber for cooking, oven appliances include one or more heating elements positioned at a top portion, a bottom portion, or both the top portion and the bottom portion of the cooking chamber. Some oven appliances also include a convection heating element and fan for convection cooking cycles. The heating element or elements may be used for various cycles of the oven appliance, such as a preheat cycle, a cooking cycle, or a self-cleaning cycle.

Oven appliances which include a gas burner as one of the heating elements, such as the bake heating element, generally include a partition which separates the gas burner from the cooking chamber, such as a floor of the cooking chamber below which the gas burner is positioned. Typically, the gas burner is located at a center position relative to the cooking chamber, such as, in the case of a bake element, below, e.g., directly below, the geometric center of the cooking chamber. Such oven appliances typically include a flame spreader above the gas burner bake heating element, such that the flame spreader is in direct thermal communication with the gas burner and the cooking chamber receives radiant heat from the flame spreader and/or partition. However, such arrangement may reduce the efficiency of heating the cooking chamber, e.g., due to the thermal mass of the flame spreader, as opposed to heating the chamber directly.

Accordingly, an oven appliance with features for directly heating a cooking chamber therein would be desirable. In particular, an oven appliance with features for directly heating a cooking chamber therein with a gas burner bake heating element would be desirable.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the following description, may be apparent from the description, or may be learned through practice of the invention.

In one exemplary embodiment, an oven appliance is provided. The oven appliance includes a cabinet defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction. The vertical, lateral, and transverse directions are mutually perpendicular. The cabinet includes a front portion spaced apart from a back portion along the transverse direction and a left side spaced apart from a right side along the lateral direction. A chamber is defined within the cabinet for receipt of food items for cooking. A gas burner is positioned within the cabinet outside of the chamber. The gas burner is in thermal communication and in fluid communication with the chamber by a direct flow path from the gas burner to the chamber.

In another exemplary embodiment, an oven appliance is provided. The oven appliance includes a cabinet. A chamber is defined within the cabinet for receipt of food items for cooking. A gas burner is positioned within the cabinet outside of the chamber. The gas burner is in thermal communication and in fluid communication with the chamber by a direct flow path from the gas burner to the chamber.

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following description and appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A full and enabling disclosure of the present invention, including the best mode thereof, directed to one of ordinary skill in the art, is set forth in the specification, which makes reference to the appended figures.

FIG. 1 provides a front view of an exemplary oven appliance according to one or more embodiments of the present subject matter.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the oven appliance of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 provides an enlarged cross-sectional view of a lower portion of the oven appliance of FIG. 1 according to one or more embodiments of the present subject matter.

FIG. 4 provides an enlarged cross-sectional view of a lower portion of the oven appliance of FIG. 1 according to one or more additional embodiments of the present subject matter.

FIG. 5 provides an enlarged cross-sectional view of a lower portion of the oven appliance of FIG. 1 according to one or more additional embodiments of the present subject matter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference now will be made in detail to embodiments of the invention, one or more examples of which are illustrated in the drawings. Each example is provided by way of explanation of the invention, not limitation of the invention. In fact, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. For instance, features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used with another embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers such modifications and variations as come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

As used herein, terms of approximation, such as “generally,” or “about” include values within ten percent greater or less than the stated value. In the context of an angle or direction, such terms include values within ten degrees of the stated direction. For example, “generally vertical” includes directions within ten degrees of vertical in any direction, e.g., clockwise or counter-clockwise.

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate an oven appliance 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present subject matter. Oven appliance 100 includes an insulated cabinet 102 which defines a vertical direction V, a lateral direction L, and a transverse direction T. The vertical, lateral, and transverse directions V, L, and T are mutually perpendicular and form an orthogonal direction system. Cabinet 102 extends between a top portion 40 and a bottom portion 42 along the vertical direction V. Cabinet 102 extends between a left side 44 and a right side 46 along the lateral direction L and between a front portion 48 and a back portion 50 along the transverse direction T.

Still referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, for this exemplary embodiment, oven appliance 100 includes an insulated cabinet 102 with an interior cooking chamber 104 defined by a top wall 112, a floor or bottom wall 114, a back wall 116, and a pair of opposing side walls 118. Cooking chamber 104 is configured for the receipt of one or more food items to be cooked. Oven appliance 100 includes a door 108 pivotally mounted to cabinet 102 at the opening 106 of cabinet 102 to permit selective access to cooking chamber 104 through opening 106. A handle 110 is mounted to door 108 and assists a user with opening and closing door 108. For example, a user can pull on handle 110 to open or close door 108 and access cooking chamber 104.

Oven appliance 100 can include a seal (not shown) between door 108 and cabinet 102 that assists with maintaining heat and cooking vapors within cooking chamber 104 when door 108 is closed as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Multiple parallel glass panes 122 provide for viewing the contents of cooking chamber 104 when door 108 is closed and assist with insulating cooking chamber 104. A baking rack 142 is positioned in cooking chamber 104 for the receipt of food items or utensils containing food items. Baking rack 142 is slidably received onto embossed ribs or sliding rails 144 such that rack 142 may be conveniently moved into and out of cooking chamber 104 when door 108 is open.

One or more heating elements may be included at the top, bottom, or both of cooking chamber 104 to provide heat to cooking chamber 104 for cooking. Such heating element(s) can be gas, electric, microwave, or a combination thereof. For example, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, oven appliance 100 includes a top heating element 124 which, in the illustrated example embodiment is an electric resistance heating element 124, and a bake heating element or bottom heating element 126, which, in the illustrated example embodiment is a gas burner 126, and bottom heating element 126 is positioned adjacent to and below bottom wall 114.

In the illustrated example embodiment, oven appliance 100 also has a convection heating element 136 and convection fan 138 positioned adjacent back wall 116 of cooking chamber 104. Convection fan 138 is powered by a convection fan motor 139. Further, convection fan 138 can be a variable speed fan—meaning the speed of fan 138 may be controlled or set anywhere between and including, e.g., zero and one hundred percent (0%-100%). In certain embodiments, oven appliance 100 may also include a bidirectional triode thyristor (not shown), i.e., a triode for alternating current (TRIAC), to regulate the operation of convection fan 138 such that the speed of fan 138 may be adjusted during operation of oven appliance 100. The speed of convection fan 138 can be determined by controller 140. In addition, a sensor 137 such as, e.g., a rotary encoder, a Hall effect sensor, or the like, may be included at the base of fan 138, for example, between fan 138 and motor 139 as shown in the exemplary embodiment of FIGS. 2 and 3, to sense the speed of fan 138. The speed of fan 138 may be measured in, e.g., revolutions per minute (“RPM”). In some embodiments, the convection fan 138 may be configured to rotate in two directions, e.g., a first direction of rotation and a second direction of rotation opposing the first direction of rotation. For example, in some embodiments, reversing the direction of rotation, e.g., from the first direction to the second direction or vice versa, may still direct air from the back of the cavity. As another example, in some embodiments reversing the direction results in air being directed from the top and/or sides of the cavity rather than the back of the cavity. Additionally, the convection heating features are optional and are shown and described herein solely by way of example. In other embodiments the oven appliance 100 may include different convection heating features or may not include convection heating features at all.

In various embodiments, more than one convection heater, e.g., more than one convection heating elements 136 and/or convection fans 138, may be provided. In such embodiments, the number of convection fans and convection heaters may be the same or may differ, e.g., more than one convection heating element 136 may be associated with a single convection fan 138. Similarly, more than one top heating element 124 and/or more than one bottom heating element 126 may be provided in various combinations, e.g., one top heating element 124 with two or more bottom heating elements 126, two or more bottom heating elements 126 with no top heating element 124, etc.

Oven appliance 100 includes a user interface 128 having a display 130 positioned on an interface panel 132 and having a variety of controls 134. Interface 128 allows the user to select various options for the operation of oven 100 including, e.g., various cooking and cleaning cycles. Operation of oven appliance 100 can be regulated by a controller 140 that is operatively coupled to, i.e., in communication with, user interface 128, heating elements 124, 126, and other components of oven 100 as will be further described.

For example, in response to user manipulation of the user interface 128, controller 140 can operate the heating element(s). Controller 140 can receive measurements from one or more temperature sensors (not shown) which are in or in thermal communication with the cooking chamber 104. Controller 140 may also provide information such as a status indicator, e.g., a temperature indication, to the user with display 130. Controller 140 can also be provided with other features as will be further described herein.

Controller 140 may include a memory and one or more processing devices such as microprocessors, CPUs, or the like, such as general or special purpose microprocessors operable to execute programming instructions or micro-control code associated with operation of oven appliance 100. The memory may represent random access memory such as DRAM or read only memory such as ROM or FLASH. In one embodiment, the processor executes programming instructions stored in memory. The memory may be a separate component from the processor or may be included onboard within the processor. The memory can store information accessible by the processor(s), including instructions that can be executed by processor(s). For example, the instructions can be software or any set of instructions that when executed by the processor(s), cause the processor(s) to perform operations. For the embodiment depicted, the instructions may include a software package configured to operate the system, e.g., to execute exemplary methods of operating the oven appliance 100. Controller 140 may also be or include the capabilities of either a proportional (P), proportional-integral (PI), or proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control for feedback-based control implemented with, e.g., temperature feedback from one or more sensors such as temperature sensors and/or probes, etc.

Controller 140 may be positioned in a variety of locations throughout oven appliance 100. In the illustrated embodiment, controller 140 is located next to user interface 128 within interface panel 132. In other embodiments, controller 140 may be located under or next to the user interface 128, otherwise within interface panel 132, or at any other appropriate location with respect to oven appliance 100. Generally, controller 140 will be positioned within the cabinet 102. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, input/output (“I/O”) signals are routed between controller 140 and various operational components of oven appliance 100 such as heating elements 124, 126, 136, convection fan 138, controls 134, display 130, alarms, and/or other components as may be provided. In one embodiment, user interface 128 may represent a general purpose I/O (“GPIO”) device or functional block.

Although shown with touch type controls 134, it should be understood that controls 134 and the configuration of oven appliance 100 shown in FIG. 1 is provided by way of example only. More specifically, user interface 128 may include various input components, such as one or more of a variety of electrical, mechanical, or electro-mechanical input devices including rotary dials, push buttons, and touch pads. User interface 128 may include other display components, such as a digital or analog display device designed to provide operational feedback to a user. User interface 128 may be in communication with controller 140 via one or more signal lines or shared communication busses.

While oven 100 is shown as a wall oven, the present invention could also be used with other cooking appliances such as, e.g., a stand-alone oven, an oven with a stove-top, or other configurations of such ovens. Numerous variations in the oven configuration are possible within the scope of the present subject matter. For example, variations in the type and/or layout of the controls 134, as mentioned above, are possible. As another example, the oven appliance 100 may include multiple doors 108 instead of or in addition to the single door 108 illustrated. Such examples include a dual cavity oven, a French door oven, and others. As still another example, one or more of the illustrated heating elements may be substituted with microwave heating elements, or any other suitable heating elements. The examples described herein are provided by way of illustration only and without limitation.

Referring specifically to FIG. 2, it may be seen that the gas burner 126 defines a generally cylindrical shape with a longitudinal axis 204 extending therethrough. The gas burner 126 also includes a plurality of ports 200 defined therein, e.g., in one or more linear arrays on one or more sides of the gas burner 126. As will be recognized and understood by those of ordinary skill in the art, the ports 200 orient and direct combustion products, e.g., flames and heated gases, from the gas burner 126, e.g., to or towards the cooking chamber 104. In the example embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2, the gas burner 126 is oriented generally along the transverse direction T, e.g., the longitudinal axis 204 of the gas burner 126 is parallel to or within ten degrees of the transverse direction T.

Also as may be seen in FIG. 2, the gas burner 126 is positioned within the cabinet 102 and outside of the chamber 104. In some embodiments, for example as illustrated in FIG. 2, the gas burner 126 may be a bake heating element or bottom heating element and may be positioned below the chamber 104 and separated from the chamber 104 by a partition, e.g., the bottom wall 114 of the chamber 104. The gas burner 126 may be in thermal communication and in fluid communication with the chamber by a flow path extending through one or more apertures or openings 202 in the bottom wall. In at least some embodiments, the flow path may extend from the gas burner 126, e.g., from the ports 200 thereof, through the opening(s) 202, and into the cooking chamber 104. For example, the flow path may be a direct flow path from the gas burner 126 to the chamber 104, e.g. where combustion products from the ports 200 of the gas burner 126 are oriented directly into the chamber 104 through the opening 202 and not against any intermediate solid structure, such as a solid portion of the bottom wall 114 or a flame spreader.

In some embodiments, e.g., as illustrated in FIG. 3, the oven appliance 100 may include a single gas burner 126. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the gas burner 126 may include ports 200 on each side of the gas burner 126. The ports 200 may each be oriented and configured to direct combustion products 206 directly into the cooking chamber 104 through the openings 202 in the bottom wall 114 of the cooking chamber 104. For example, in some embodiments, the single gas burner 126 may be positioned off-center relative to the cooking chamber 104, e.g., as illustrated in FIG. 3. In some such embodiments, the single gas burner 126 may be positioned closer to one edge or side of the cabinet 102 than others. For example, the gas burner 126 may be positioned closer to the front portion 48 and farther (relative to the distance from the front portion 48) from the back portion 50, or vice versa.

In some embodiments, the ports 200 may have an oblique orientation, e.g., as illustrated in FIG. 3. For example, in such embodiments, the ports 200 may be at an oblique angle to the vertical direction V. Further, in such embodiments, the openings 202 in the bottom wall 114 are generally parallel to the ports 200, e.g., oriented at about the same angle, e.g., with respect to the vertical direction V, as the ports 200. The openings 202 may also be aligned with the ports 200. Thereby, the combustion products 206 generated by the gas burner 126 may follow a direct, e.g., along a straight line and uninterrupted by any solid components of the oven appliance 100, flow path from the gas burner 126 to the cooking chamber 104, as illustrated by the arrows in FIG. 3.

In additional embodiments, the oven appliance 100 may include multiple gas burners 126, such as two or more gas burners 126, such as three gas burners 126 as illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5. In such embodiments, each gas burner 126 of the multiple gas burners 126 may be positioned below the cooking chamber 104, e.g., below the bottom wall 114 thereof.

In some embodiments, the openings 202 may be oriented along the vertical direction V, e.g., as illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5. In such embodiments, the ports 200 on the or each gas burner 126 may be positioned at a top or uppermost vertical portion of the or each gas burner 126 and may be oriented along the vertical direction V. The or each gas burner 126 may be located directly beneath each corresponding opening 202 along the vertical direction V such that the ports 200 are aligned with the opening(s) 202 in order to provide a direct flow path for combustion products 206 from the ports 200 to flow directly into the cooking chamber 104 via the opening(s) 202.

In some embodiments, e.g., as illustrated in FIG. 4, the or each gas burner 126 may be oriented along the lateral direction L (into and out of the page in FIG. 4). In such embodiments, for example, the or each gas burner 126 may be positioned within the cabinet 102 such that the longitudinal axis 204 (FIG. 2) of the or each gas burner 126 is oriented generally along the lateral direction L. For example, in embodiments with multiple gas burners 126, the gas burners 126 may be generally parallel to each other and to the lateral direction L and may be spaced apart along the transverse direction T, as illustrated in FIG. 4.

In some embodiments, e.g., as illustrated in FIG. 5, the or each gas burner 126 may be oriented along the transverse direction T (into and out of the page in FIG. 5). In such embodiments, for example, the or each gas burner 126 may be positioned within the cabinet 102 such that the longitudinal axis 204 (FIG. 2) of the or each gas burner 126 is oriented generally along the transverse direction T. For example, in embodiments with multiple gas burners 126, the gas burners 126 may be generally parallel to each other and to the transverse direction T and may be spaced apart along the lateral direction L, as illustrated in FIG. 5.

This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they include structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal language of the claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An oven appliance, comprising: a cabinet defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction, the vertical, lateral, and transverse directions being mutually perpendicular, the cabinet comprising a front portion spaced apart from a back portion along the transverse direction and a left side spaced apart from a right side along the lateral direction; a chamber defined within the cabinet for receipt of food items for cooking; a gas burner positioned within the cabinet outside of the chamber, the gas burner in thermal communication and in fluid communication with the chamber by a direct flow path from the gas burner to the chamber.
 2. The oven appliance of claim 1, wherein the gas burner comprises a plurality of ports, and wherein the plurality of ports are oriented and configured to direct combustion products from the gas burner along the direct flow path into the chamber.
 3. The oven appliance of claim 1, wherein the gas burner is separated from the chamber by a partition, and wherein the direct flow path extends through an opening in the partition.
 4. The oven appliance of claim 3, wherein the partition is a bottom wall of the chamber and the gas burner is positioned below the bottom wall along the vertical direction.
 5. The oven appliance of claim 3, wherein the gas burner comprises a plurality of ports, and wherein the plurality of ports are oriented and configured to direct combustion products from the gas burner through the opening in the partition.
 6. The oven appliance of claim 1, wherein the direct flow path extends along a single straight line with no obstructions on the single straight line between the gas burner and the chamber.
 7. The oven appliance of claim 6, wherein the direct flow path is coextensive with the single straight line such that the direct flow path begins at one end of the single straight line and ends at the other end of the single straight line.
 8. The oven appliance of claim 1, wherein the direct flow path is oblique to the vertical direction.
 9. The oven appliance of claim 1, wherein the direct flow path extends along or parallel to the vertical direction.
 10. The oven appliance of claim 1, wherein the gas burner is a first gas burner, further comprising a second gas burner, wherein the second gas burner is in thermal communication and in fluid communication with the chamber by a second direct flow path from the gas burner to the chamber.
 11. The oven appliance of claim 10, wherein the first gas and the second gas burner are oriented along the transverse direction and spaced apart along the lateral direction.
 12. The oven appliance of claim 10, wherein the first gas and the second gas burner are oriented along the lateral direction and spaced apart along the transverse direction.
 13. An oven appliance, comprising: a cabinet; a chamber defined within the cabinet for receipt of food items for cooking; a gas burner positioned within the cabinet outside of the chamber, the gas burner in thermal communication and in fluid communication with the chamber by a direct flow path from the gas burner to the chamber.
 14. The oven appliance of claim 13, wherein the gas burner comprises a plurality of ports, and wherein the plurality of ports are oriented and configured to direct combustion products from the gas burner along the direct flow path into the chamber.
 15. The oven appliance of claim 13, wherein the gas burner is separated from the chamber by a partition, and wherein the direct flow path extends through an opening in the partition.
 16. The oven appliance of claim 15, wherein the gas burner comprises a plurality of ports, and wherein the plurality of ports are oriented and configured to direct combustion products from the gas burner through the opening in the partition.
 17. The oven appliance of claim 13, wherein the direct flow path extends along a single straight line with no obstructions on the single straight line between the gas burner and the chamber.
 18. The oven appliance of claim 17, wherein the direct flow path is coextensive with the single straight line such that the direct flow path begins at one end of the single straight line and ends at the other end of the single straight line.
 19. The oven appliance of claim 13, wherein the gas burner is a first gas burner, further comprising a second gas burner, wherein the second gas burner is in thermal communication and in fluid communication with the chamber by a second direct flow path from the gas burner to the chamber. 